Printing plate module, printing press, and method of mounting plates

ABSTRACT

A printing plate module is disclosed. The module comprises a printing plate support member ( 3 ) having means ( 5 ) to locate printing plates ( 4 ) in a predetermined position thereon and, engagement means ( 8 ) on the plate support member for the releasab a engagement of the printing plate support member ( 3 ) with a printing press during a plate loading operation to locate printing plates ( 4 ) located on the plate support member ( 3 ) in a predetermined position relative to a plate cylinder ( 7 ) of the press. The invention also discloses a printing apparatus and, a method of loading printing plates onto a plate cylinder of a printing unit.

This application is a National Stage Application under 35 U.S.C. §371from PCT/GB2005/050059, filed Apr. 29, 2005, which claims priority under35 U.S.C. §119 (a)-(d) to United Kingdom Application No. GB 0409594.9,filed on Apr. 29, 2004, both of which are hereby incorporated byreference.

BACKGROUND OF THE DISCLOSURE

The present invention relates to a module for holding printing platesready to be transferred onto the plate cylinders of a rotary offsetprinting machine. The invention also relates to a printing plate loadingmodule for loading printing plates onto a plate cylinder of a press andto a printing press including the plate-loading module according to theinvention. The invention further relates to a printing system comprisingthe printing plate module and a printing press according to theinvention. A method of mounting printing plates onto the plate cylinderof a printing unit is also disclosed.

A web offset printing press comprises a number of printing units. Eachunit is designed to print matter onto a continuous web of paper as ittravels through the print unit. The printed web emerging from each printunit come together in a folding unit which orientates, folds and cutseach web to produce the finished article such as a newspaper ormagazine. Each unit contains at least one pair of cylinder groups orprint couples comprising a rotatably mounted plate cylinder, to whichone or more printing plates are attached and, a rotatably mountedblanket cylinder. The printing unit may incorporate a shaft less drivesystem in which each cylinder group is driven by its own drive motorthat directly drives one of the cylinders of a group via a belt or geardrive and the other cylinder of that group is mechanically coupled tothe driven cylinder. An inking system associated with each print coupleis operable to feed ink onto the printing plates attached to the platecylinder as the plate cylinder rotates. As the cylindrical surfaces ofthe plate and blanket cylinder are in rolling contact, an inked image istransferred from the printing plates onto the blanket cylinder and fromthe blanket cylinder onto the medium to be printed.

In large scale high volume presses used, for example, in the productionof newspapers, multi-colour printing is achieved by providing each printunit with a number of printing couples arranged in pairs which aremounted vertically above one another in a stack so that the paper webtravels in a vertically upward direction between each pair of printcouples. A unit having four print couple pairs, i.e. eight printcouples, is able to print up to four colours on each side of the paperweb and is often referred to as a “four-high” unit.

When a press is prepared for a print run, at least one printing platecarrying the image to be printed must be firmly clamped to the platecylinder of each print couple. Generally, the plate cylinder includes atleast one recess or lock-up slot extending longitudinally along thesurface of the plate cylinder and into which is received the leading andtrailing edge of a printing plate. A clamping mechanism located in therecess engages the leading and trailing edges of an inserted printingplate and firmly holds the printing plate in position during a printrun. The number of printing plates that must be attached to the platecylinder of each print couple depends on the width of the press andwhether the plate cylinder carries one or two printing plates around itscircumference, i.e. whether it is a “one around” or “two around” platecylinder. For example, in a double width one-around press, the platecylinder may carry four printing plates across its width and oneprinting plate extending circumferentially around its cylindricalsurface. Therefore, there could be as many as eight printing plates in asingle printing couple pair and thirty-two printing plates in a fourhigh printing unit all of which must be replaced before a new print runcan be initiated. When the plate cylinder is of the “two-around” type,the number of printing plates is doubled accordingly. Therefore, it willbe appreciated that even in the production of just one newspaper issue,a very large number of printing plates will be required.

It is of utmost importance to ensure that all the printing platesattached to one plate cylinder are located in very precisecircumferential and lateral registration with respect to each other. Itwill also be appreciated that as ink of a different colour is applied tothe print medium as it passes through each print couple pair of a printunit, it is also important that the printing plates are in alignmentwith the printing plates attached to each of the other plate cylindersof the press as any misalignment of a printing plate will result inmis-registration of the different coloured inks applied to the printmedium which will reduce the quality of the final print.

To enable accurate location of the printing plates, precise detectionand confirmation of the position of each printing plate must bedetermined during installation onto the plate cylinder. A commonly knownmethod of aligning a printing plate on a plate cylinder and to make surethat it is located in an “in-register” position is to provide theleading edge of each plate with a number of slots that locate on pins inthe recess in the plate cylinder into which the leading edge of theprinting plate is received when it is attached to a plate cylinder. Theposition of the slots and pins are predetermined so that, when the pinshave been located in the slots, the printing plate is in the correctposition and the press operator can be confident that the printing platewill be positioned correctly in relation to other printing plates.

In a conventional printing machine, the press operator loads printingplates onto the plate cylinders manually so that they are accuratelylocated in their predetermined in-register positions. However, it willbe appreciated that this activity is very labour intensive and timeconsuming especially when a large number of printing plates need to bereplaced. It also means that the press is rendered inoperable for anextended period of time and this has a significantly detrimental affecton the overall productivity of the press. In fact, many press operatorssimply cannot afford to shut down a press for the amount of time ittakes to complete a manual plate change due to increased demand forprinted matter and the very tight deadlines that need to be met.

In an attempt to reduce the setting-up time, automatic or semi-automaticprinting plate changing systems have been developed in which a printingplate is automatically fed onto, and accurately located on, the platecylinder by a printing plate feeding mechanism attached to the printingunit. In a semi-automatic plate changing system, the press operator mustaccurately position the printing plates in printing plate holders fixedto the printing press adjacent to each of the plate cylinders of thepress. As the position of the holder is fixed, the position of theprinting plate in the holder relative to its intended position on theplate cylinder is known and the printing plate can be conveyed onto theplate cylinder with its “in-register” position maintained. In anautomatic printing plate changing system, the position of the plate doesnot rely on the accurate positioning of the printing plates in theholder but is determined by position sensors or other devices whilst theplate is fed onto the plate cylinder or, once the leading edge of theprinting plate has been inserted into the recess in the plate cylinder.Therefore, in an automatic plate changing system, the press operatordoes not have to concern himself with the precise positioning of theprinting plates within their holders.

A disadvantage with semi-automatic plate changing systems is that thepress operator still has to accurately locate the printing plates ineach of the holders adjacent to each of the plate cylinders on the pressitself. Although this does reduce the plating-up time, as the printingplates for the next print run can be located in their holders whilst thepress is still operational with another set of printing plates, it isstill undesirable for people to be working on the press whilst it isrunning as this can be dangerous, especially when loading the holderslocated adjacent to the uppermost plate cylinders which are located inan elevated position. Furthermore, sensors or other position locationdevices are still required to ensure that the printing plates arepositioned accurately with respect to the plate cylinder onto which theyare being loaded during and/or after the loading process when the platesare being conveyed from their holders onto the plate cylinder.

Although an automatic plate changing system alleviates the problems witha semi-automatic system, the operator still needs to place new printingplates into the holders ready for the next print run and so must beworking on the press whilst it is still running and so the potentialdanger associated with this task is still not avoided or reduced.Furthermore, an automatic plate changing system requires positionsensors and/or other devices to accurately determine the location of theprinting plates themselves as they are conveyed onto the plate cylinder.Even when the position of the printing plates before loading begins isfound to be accurate, it is often found that one or more plates mayshift slightly during loading and so repeated checking of the platepositions once they have been located on the plate cylinder is required.

The present invention seeks to overcome or alleviate the aforementionedproblems with manual plate loading procedures as well as thoseassociated with semi-automatic or automatic plate loading systemsthereby reducing the time taken to replace the printing plates on eachplate cylinder and the printing press as a whole. It also ensures moreprecise positioning of the printing plates as they are loaded onto theplate cylinders thereby avoiding the need for complicated detection andposition sensing equipment for detecting the position of the printingplates.

SUMMARY OF THE DISCLOSURE

According to one aspect of the invention, there is provided a printingplate module for holding printing plates ready to be transferred onto aplate cylinder of a printing press during a plate loading cycle, theprinting plate module comprising a printing plate support member havingmeans to locate printing plates in predetermined positions thereon andengagement means on the printing plate support member for the temporaryengagement of the printing plate support member with a printing pressduring a plate loading cycle to locate printing plates on the platesupport member in a predetermined position relative to a plate cylinderof the press onto which printing plates are to be transferred.

The printing plate support member preferably includes means to locate aplurality of printing plates thereon so that each printing plate islocated in a predetermined position on the plate support member and, ina predetermined position relative to each of the other printing plateslocated on the plate support member.

In a preferred embodiment, the printing plate module comprises acartridge, the printing plate support member being slidable between astorage position in which the plate support member is received withinthe cartridge and, a plate loading position in which the printing platesupport member extends from the cartridge to enable the engagement meansto make temporary engagement with printing press during a plate loadingcycle.

Advantageously, the cartridge is releasably attachable to a plateloading module on a printing press which is operable to transferprinting plates from the plate support member onto a plate cylinder withwhich the plate support member has become temporarily engaged, thecartridge being detachable from the plate loading module to enable it tobe moved away from a printing press to facilitate loading of plates ontothe plate support member.

Preferably, there is a plurality of printing plate support members inthe cartridge and each printing plate support member is independentlyslideable between a storage position and a plate loading position forthe transfer of the printing plates from any of the plate supportmembers onto a plate cylinder by the plate loading module.

Conveniently, the or each plate support member includes a cam trackwhich co-operates with a movable cam member on the plate loading module,when the cartridge is attached thereto, to move the plate support memberfrom its storage into its plate loading position.

In a preferred embodiment, the means to locate printing plates on the oreach plate support member comprises a plurality of pins on the or eachplate support member for engagement in slots formed in a leading edge ofeach printing plate.

According to another aspect of the invention, there is provided aplate-loading module for transferring printing plates from a platesupport member, on which printing plates are located in pre-determinedpositions, onto a plate cylinder of a printing press during a plateloading cycle in which the printing plate support member is inengagement with the printing press to locate printing plates on theplate support member in a predetermined position relative to said platecylinder, the plate-loading module comprising a carriage attached to theprinting press so that the carriage is movable into positions adjacentto each of the plate cylinders of the press, a support arm attached tothe carriage pivotable relative thereto between a plate loading positionand a retracted position and, a plate loading head attached to theremote end of the support arm, the plate loading head being operable toengage printing plates located on a plate support member in engagementwith the printing press when the support arm pivots towards its loadingposition so that the printing plates are held by the plate loading headwhen the plate support member is disengaged and withdrawn from theprinting press, further pivotal movement of the support arm into itsloading position, after withdrawal of the plate support member from theprinting press, being operable to locate a leading edge of the printingplates in a predetermined position on the plate cylinder.

In a preferred embodiment, the plate loading head is pivotally mountedon the support arm to maintain the orientation of the plate loading headrelative to the plate support member when the support arm pivots betweenits retracted and loading positions.

The plate loading head may conveniently comprise an array of suctionelements which contact the surface of the printing plates when thesupport arm is pivoted towards its loading position, the suctionelements being operable to grasp the printing plates when activated.

The plate loading head may also comprise a pressure roller for pressingthe printing plates against the plate cylinder once the plate loadinghead has located the leading edge of the printing plates in apredetermined position on the plate cylinder, as the plate cylinderrotates to wrap the printing plates around the plate cylinder.

According to another aspect of the invention, there is provided aprinting press including a plurality of plate cylinders and aplate-loading module operable to transfer printing plates from platesupport members onto the plate cylinders of the press, the plate loadingmodule including a carriage mounted to the press and movable between anon-operative parked position into plate loading positions adjacent toeach of the plate cylinders of the press.

The printing press conveniently includes an elongate guide track mountedthereon and a slide unit on the carriage in co-operation with the guidetrack to enable the carriage to slide along the guide track intopositions adjacent to each of the plate cylinders of the press.

The slide unit ideally comprises pre-loaded roller bearings whichco-operate with the guide track.

A motor is conveniently mounted to the carriage for moving the carriagealong the track.

Preferably, the motor carries a pinion in meshing engagement with atoothed rack mounted to the printing press, the pinion being rotatablydriven in response to rotation of the motor to move the carriage alongthe guide track.

Advantageously, sensing means are provided to determine the position ofthe carriage on the guide track so that the carriage can be stopped indifferent pre-determined positions adjacent to each of the platecylinders of the press.

The printing press according to the invention most preferably includes aprimary module, to which the plate cylinders are mounted, and at leastone inking module, to which inking systems for applying ink to the platecylinders are mounted, wherein the inking module is separable from theprimary module to facilitate access to the plate cylinders by the plateloading module.

The carriage is advantageously mounted to the primary module so that itcan move from its non-operative parked position into its plate loadingpositions only when the inking module has been separated from theprimary module.

According to another aspect the invention comprises the printing pressaccording to the invention including the plate-loading module accordingto the invention.

The printing press according to the invention preferably comprisesengagement means to locate a plate support member thereon when the platesupport member is in engagement with the printing press to locateprinting plates on the plate support member in a predetermined positionrelative to said plate cylinder.

The engagement means to locate a plate support member thereon arepreferably located on each plate cylinder.

The engagement means are preferably recessed below the cylindricalsurface of the plate cylinder.

The present invention also provides a printing system comprising aprinting plate module according to the invention and, a printing pressaccording to the invention.

According to another aspect of the invention, there is provided a methodof transferring printing plates, located on a printing plate supportmember in a printing plate storage module according to the invention, toa plate cylinder of a printing press according to the invention,comprising the steps of:

(a) moving a plate support member together with printing plates locatedthereon towards the printing press so that the plate support membertemporarily engages the press to locate the printing plates in apredetermined position relative to the plate cylinder onto which platesare to be transferred, and

(b) operating a printing plate loading module to transfer printingplates from the plate support member onto the plate cylinder.

The method preferably includes the step of:

(c) moving the plate loading module together with the plate supportmember into a position adjacent to one of the plate cylinders onto whichplates are to be transferred prior carrying out step (a).

The printing press preferably includes engagement means to temporarilyengage the plate support member, the engagement means being located oneach of the plate cylinders, and the method preferably includes the stepof rotating the plate cylinder whilst moving the plate support membertowards it so that the plate support member engages with the engagementmeans on the plate cylinder onto which the printing plates are to betransferred to locate the printing plates in a predetermined positionrelative to said plate cylinder.

In a preferred embodiment, the plate support member is slideablyreceived in a cartridge for movement between a storage position in thecartridge and an extended position for engagement with the press, thecartridge being releasably attachable to the plate-loading module andthe method including the step of attaching the cartridge to the plateloading module before carrying out steps (a), (b) or (c).

The cartridge may contain a plurality of plate support members and themethod may include the step of moving the cartridge relative to theplate loading module to enable the plate loading module to transferplates from any one of the plate support members onto different platecylinders of the press.

According to another aspect of the invention, there is provided anapparatus for mounting a set of printing plates to an offset rotaryprinting press comprising a plate cylinder having a lock-up slot, theapparatus comprising a plate loading module associated with the printingpress for inserting a lead edge of each printing plate into a lock-upslot in a plate cylinder, a plate support member having locating meansto enable the printing plates to be pre-positioned relative to eachother on the plate support member, the plate support member alsoincluding cooperating means for engagement with correspondingcooperating means on a plate cylinder when the plate support membertogether with the printing plates is moved toward a plate cylinder tolocate the pre-positioned printing plates in a predetermined locationrelative to a lock-up slot on a plate cylinder, the plate loading modulebeing operable to transfer the pre-positioned printing plates from theplate support member and insert the lead edge of each printing plateinto a lock up slot whilst maintaining the relative pre-positioning ofthe printing plates.

According to yet another aspect of the invention, there is provided amethod of mounting a set of printing plates to a plate cylinder of anoffset rotary printing press comprising a plate cylinder having alock-up slot, the method including the steps of:

(a) locating a set of printing plates in predetermined relativepositions on a plate support member,

(b) moving the plate support member together with the pre-positionedprinting plates located thereon towards the plate cylinder so thatcooperating means on the plate support member and on the plate cylinderreleasably engage to locate the pre-positioned printing plates in apredetermined position relative to the lock-up slot on the platecylinder,

(d) operating a printing plate loading module associated with theprinting press to convey the pre-positioned printing plates from theplate support member and to insert the lead edge of each printing plateinto the lock-up slot whilst maintaining the relative pre-positioning ofthe printing plates.

Step (b) preferably includes the step of rotating the plate cylinder sothat the cooperating means on the plate support member and on the platecylinder releasably engage.

In a preferred embodiment, the plate support member is mounted in acartridge and the method preferably includes the step of mounting theprinting plates on the plate support member in the cartridge in alocation remote from the press and moving the cartridge into a plateloading position in which the plate support member can move toward theplate cylinder so that cooperating means on the plate support member andon the plate cylinder releasably engage to locate the pre-positionedprinting plates in a predetermined position relative to the lock-up sloton the plate cylinder.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

Embodiments of the invention will now be described, by way of exampleonly, with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which:

FIG. 1 shows a simplified side view of a printing plate storage moduleaccording to a first aspect of the invention;

FIG. 2 shows the side view of FIG. 1 but with a plate support member inits extended position and in engagement with a plate cylinder onto whichthe printing plates located on the plate support member are to beloaded;

FIG. 3A is an enlarged partial view of FIG. 2 showing the connectionbetween the plate support member and the plate cylinder;

FIG. 3B is a partial top plan view of one end of a plate cylindershowing the engagement member to which the plate support member attachesto the plate cylinder;

FIG. 4 is a simplified top plan view of a plate cylinder and cartridgewith a plate support member, with four printing plates located thereon,in its extended and engaged position;

FIG. 5 is a simplified side view of the main components of the plateloading module and the plate cylinder located with its lock-up slot in aposition ready to receive printing plates during a loading operation;

FIGS. 6A to 6J show the sequence of steps involved in a printing plateloading operation;

FIG. 7 illustrates an end view of the plate loading module in its raisedposition located between a plate cylinder and a plate support member;

FIG. 8 is the end view of FIG. 7 with the support arm in a loweredposition in which the plate loading head is in engagement with theprinting plates mounted to the plate support member which has moved intoengagement with the plate cylinder ready for loading;

FIG. 9 is the end view of FIGS. 7 and 8 but shows the position of theloading head after the lead edge of the printing plate has been pushedinto the lock up slot in the plate cylinder and the plate support memberretracted;

FIG. 10 is an enlarged end view of a portion of the plate loadingmechanism showing the plate loading head in more detail;

FIG. 10A shows the same view of the plate loading head as FIG. 10 butwith a separate, rather than integral, pressure roller 23;

FIG. 11 is a front view of the plate loading module illustrated in FIGS.7 to 10;

FIG. 12 is a side partial view of a printing unit equipped with theplate loading module shown in FIGS. 7 to 11 and to which a cartridge isreleasably attached, the plate loading module and cartridge being shownin two different positions;

FIG. 13 is a front view of the cylinder module shown in FIG. 12 togetherwith the plate loading module and cartridge being shown in two differentpositions;

FIGS. 14A and 14B are front and end views respectively of a portion ofthe plate loading module and cylinder module illustrated in FIG. 13;

FIG. 15 is a top plan view of a portion of the plate loading module andcylinder module shown in FIGS. 12 and 13;

FIG. 16 is a partial side view of the cylinder module together withplate loading module and cartridge attached thereto, the plate loadingmodule being positioned for loading printing plates onto the uppermostplate cylinder and the cartridge being positioned relative to the plateloading module for loading plates from the second uppermost platesupport member;

FIG. 17 is the partial side view of FIG. 16 but with the plate loadingmodule positioned for loading printing plates onto the lowermost platecylinder and the cartridge being positioned relative to the plateloading module for loading plate from the lowest plate support member;

FIG. 18 is the partial side view of FIGS. 16 and 17 but with the plateloading module in its parked position above the cylinder module;

FIG. 19 is a simplified underside view of a plate support member andplate loading module with the plate support member in its retractedposition to show how the plate loading module is moved from itsretracted to its extended position; and

FIG. 20 is the simplified underside view of FIG. 19 in which the platesupport member has moved towards its extended position.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE DISCLOSURE

Referring initially to FIG. 1, there is shown a printing plate storagemodule 1 according to an embodiment of the invention. The module 1comprises a housing or cartridge 2 containing a plurality of printingplate support members or trays 3 spaced from each other but located oneabove the other in stacked relation like drawers. The printing platesupport members 3 are mounted in the cartridge 2 so that each of themcan be independently slid between a first storage or retracted positionin which the printing plate support members 3 are positionedsubstantially within the cartridge 2 and, a second extended position inwhich the printing plate support members 3 extend from the cartridge 2.All the printing plate support members 3 shown in FIG. 1 are in theirstorage position. However, in FIG. 2, one printing plate support member3 a is shown in its extended position. The reason why the printing platesupport members 3 can slide out of the cartridge 2 into extendedpositions will become apparent from the following description.

Each printing plate support member 3 includes a number of upstandingpins 5 (see FIG. 5) thereon to locate printing plates 4 in predeterminedpositions on the printing plate support members 3 so that the positionof each of the printing plates 4 relative to the printing plate supportmember 3 on which they are mounted is known, as is the position of eachprinting plate 4 relative to each of the other printing plates 4 locatedon that printing plate support member 3. In FIG. 1, printing plates 4are shown in their located positions on each of the printing platesupport members 3. The pins 5 on the printing plate support members 3locate in slots (not shown) formed in the leading edge 4 a (see FIG. 5)of the printing plates 4. The location of the pins 5 may be adjustablewith respect to the plate support members 3 to allow compensation forfan-out. This arrangement mimics the way in which printing plates 4 arelocated on plate cylinders in conventional printing press arrangements.However, instead of providing the pins 5 in the recess in the lock-upslot of the plate cylinder, the pins 5 are provided on the printingplate support members 3. As the relative positions of the printingplates 4 are set on the printing plate support members 3, the need forpins 5 in the plate cylinder is removed. However, it will be appreciatedthat the provision of locating pins in the plate cylinder lock-up slotis not precluded to facilitate manual loading. It is envisaged that whenthe plates are to be loaded manually, they will be punched to fit ontoslightly thinner pins located in the lock-up slot. This will avoid anyconflict between the auto-loading system and manual loading.

As can be seen most clearly from FIG. 5 of the drawings, each printingplate 4 lies flat on its printing plate support member 3 with itsleading edge 4 a overhanging the front lip 6 of the plate support member3. The pins 5 upstand or protrude forward of the front lip 6 to engagewith the slots in the printing plates 4.

When printing plates 4 located on the printing plate support members 3are to be loaded onto a plate cylinder 7 of a printing unit (not shown),the cartridge 2 is positioned relative to the plate cylinder 7 so thatwhen the relevant printing plate support member 3 moves out of thecartridge 2 from its retracted into its extended position, it releasablyengages with the printing unit. In a preferred embodiment, the printingplate support member 3 releasably engages directly with the platecylinder 7 of the printing press that is to receive the printing plates4 from that plate support member 3. To facilitate this engagement, eachof the printing plate support members 3 includes a pair of engagementpins 8 (see FIG. 3A) for releasable engagement with correspondingengagement members 9 at each end of the plate cylinder 7. The engagementmembers 9 are positioned next to a lock-up slot 10 in the plate cylinder7, which receives the leading edge 4 a of the printing plates 4. Apartial plan view of one end of a plate cylinder 7 showing one of theengagement members 9 is illustrated in FIG. 3B from which it can be seenthat it comprises an elongate guide channel or slot 11 terminating at anend stop 12 next to the lock-up slot 10 in a radial direction. Anotherengagement member is provided in the same position at the other end ofthe plate cylinder 7 although this engagement member (not shown) isprovided with a wider slot or clearance for the pin 8 so that only theguide slot 11 is used to locate the plate support member 3 laterally andprovision is provided for expansion and contraction due to changes intemperature. However, the clearance slot does terminate in an end stopwhich is used to position the plate support member 3 in acircumferential direction. The clearance slot may incorporate a biasingspring, such as a leaf spring, which acts against the pin 8 to push theplate support member 3 against one side of the slot 11 and therebyaccurately locate the plate support member 3 in a lateral direction. Ascan be seen from the side end view of FIG. 3A, the engagement member 9is located on a flat shoulder 13 recessed into the cylindrical surfaceof the plate cylinder 7 so that the cylindrical surface of the platecylinder 7 or, more specifically the printing plates 4 attached to theplate cylinder 7, are in rolling contact with the cylindrical surface ofa blanket cylinder (not shown) which forms the print couple togetherwith the plate cylinder 7.

When the cartridge 2 is located adjacent to a printing unit in thecorrect position, a printing plate support member 3 moves from itsretracted into its extended position so that the engagement pins 8 onthe plate support member 3 slides along the guide channel 11 and locatesagainst the end stops 12 of the engagement members 9 to preciselyposition the plate support member 3 with respect to a lock-up slot 10 inthe plate cylinder 7. A plate support member 3 a is shown in an engagedposition in FIG. 2. When a printing plate support member 3 is fullylocated against the end stops 12, it is circumferentially and laterallylocated relative to the plate cylinder lock-up slot 10 and accuratepresentation of the printing plates 4 relative to the cylinder 7 isobtained ready for the plate loading sequence to take place, asdescribed in more detail below.

It will be appreciated that the plate cylinder 7 may need to be rotatedso that the engagement members 9 are presented to the engagement pins 8on the plate support member 3 when the plate support cylinder 3 extendstowards the plate cylinder 7 and so that the lock-up slot 10 on theplate cylinder 7 is in the correct position to receive the printingplates 4 when they are fed onto the plate cylinder 7 from the printingplate support member 3. When a plate support member 3 is located againstthe end stops 12, the lead edge 4 a of the printing plates 4 whichoverhang the front lip 6 of the plate support member 3 are positioneddirectly above the lock-up slot 10.

It will be appreciated that the position of the cartridge 2 and theplate support members 3 relative to the cartridge 2 is not absolutelycritical to ensure precise positioning of the printing plates 4. Infact, the plate support members 3 may have a degree of freedom ofmovement within the cartridge 2 in which they are located so that theywill self-adjust into the correct position as the engagement pin 8travels up the guide channel 11 and locates against the end stops 12 onthe plate cylinder 7. Once in this position, the plate support member 3is in a precise predetermined relative position to the lock-up slot inthe plate cylinder 7, as are the printing plates 4 located in precisepositions on the plate support members 3.

The printing plates 4 may be loaded onto the printing plate supportmembers 3 in the vicinity of the printing unit. However, in a preferredarrangement, the cartridge 2 is loaded with printing plates 4 in thepre-press plate making area so that the printing plates 4 can be loadedonto the printing plate support members 3 directly from the visionbender at the end of a computer to plate (CTP) making line. It isenvisaged that the printing plates 4 will be manually loaded onto theplate support members 3. However, it will be appreciated that anautomatic method for conveying new printing plates 4 from the platemaking machinery and for loading them onto the plate support members 3is also envisaged. To facilitate loading, the plate support members 3may be moved into their extended positions before being retracted backinto the cartridge 2 when the required number of printing plates 4 hasbeen positioned thereon. Once all the printing plate support members 3of a cartridge 2 have all been loaded with printing plates, thecartridge 2 is transported to a printing unit so that the printingplates 4 can be transferred from the plate support members 3 to theplate cylinders 7 of the printing unit. A conveyor system may beprovided to facilitate the transport of the cartridge 2 from thepre-press plate making area into the vicinity of the printing units.Rather than transport the cartridge 2 directly to the printing unit forimmediate loading, it will also be appreciated that it could be movedinto an intermediate storage area or buffer system whilst othercartridges 2 are loaded with printing plates 4. This would enable theplate cylinders 7 of different printing units of the same printing pressto be loaded with printing plates 4 simultaneously, each cartridge 2being loaded with the printing plates 4 for the plate cylinders 7 of oneprinting unit.

Once the cartridge 2 has arrived at a press unit, it releasably couplesto a plate-loading module mounted on the printing unit and located in aparked non-operative position above the printing unit. The plate loadingmodule is movable into different positions adjacent to each of the platecylinders of the press together with the cartridge so that apredetermined printing plate support member may engage with apredetermined plate cylinder 7 to enable the printing plates located oneach of the printing plate support members 3 to be loaded onto acorresponding plate cylinder 7 by the plate loading module. Theconstruction and operation of the plate-loading module will now bedescribed.

The printing plates 4 are transferred from the printing plate supportmembers 3 onto the plate cylinders 7 by a plate-loading module. Eachprinting unit is provided with a plate-loading module which is operableto load printing plates 4 onto each of the plate cylinders 7 of thatunit from the plate support members 3 of a cartridge 2. The plateloading module is also operable to engage the plate support members 3 ofa cartridge 2, when the cartridge is in position adjacent to a printingunit, to drive each of the plate support members 3 between its retractedand extended positions and thereby remove the requirement for thecartridge 2 to have its own power supply, as will be explained in moredetail below.

The plate-loading module 25 comprises a plate loading head 20 in theform of a bar that extends substantially across the width of the platecylinder 7 and the printing unit. The plate loading head 20 carries aseries of suction cups 21 operable to grasp printing plates 4 on theplate support members 3 when activated. The plate-loading module alsocomprises a pusher bar 22, and a pressure roller 23. As the printingplates 4 are presented to the plate cylinder 7 in pre-registeredrelative positions in their printing plate support members 3 and withthe lead edge 4 a of each of the printing plates 4 positioned directlyabove the lock-up slot 10 in the plate cylinder 7 (as shown most clearlyin FIG. 3A), the complexity of the loading operation is greatly reducedbecause the plate loading head 20 only has to maintain the presentedrelationship during loading. A partial view of the main components ofthe plate loading module showing their relative positions is illustratedin FIG. 5, and their function will now be described with reference tothe plate loading sequence illustrated in FIGS. 6A to 6J of theaccompanying drawings.

A plate loading sequence is initiated after a cartridge 2, having a setof printing plates 4 thereon, is moved into a position adjacent to theplate cylinder 7 of a printing unit and on which those printing plates 4are to be loaded.

Firstly, a selected plate support member 3 carrying the printing plates4 is moved into an extended position from the cartridge 2 towards theplate cylinder 7 (in the direction of arrow “A” in FIG. 6A) whilst theplate cylinder 7 rotates or indexes (in the direction of arrow “B” inFIG. 6A) so that, when the plate support member 3 and the plate cylinder7 come together, the engagement pins 8 on the plate support member 3slide up the guide channel 11 of the engagement member 9 on the platecylinder 7 and engage against the stop members 12 at the end of theguide channel 11 and clearance slot. The plate support member 3 is nowheld firmly in a precise circumferential and lateral position relativeto the plate cylinder 7 with accurate parallel and lateral alignment andthe printing plates 4 are now held firm ready for loading. A simplifiedplan view of the cartridge 2 with a printing plate support member 3,carrying four printing plates 4, and in its extended position inengagement with a plate cylinder 7 is shown in FIG. 4. As the platesupport member 3 is mechanically coupled to the plate cylinder 7 beforethe loading operation begins, its position is held firm and it cannotmove as the plate loading module grasps the printing plates and so exactpositioning of the printing plates 4 is maintained.

In FIG. 6B, the plate cylinder 7 has stopped rotating and the platesupport member 3 is in its fully extended position with its engagementpins 8 fully home against the stop members 12. It can be seen that thelead edges 4 a of the printing plates 4 that overhanging the platesupport member 3 are now located directly or almost directly above thelock-up slot 10 in the plate cylinder 7 and so the distance throughwhich the printing plates 4 must be moved by the plate loading mechanismis very short and in just one downward direction.

Next, and as shown in FIG. 6B, the plate loading head 20 rotates so thatthe suction cups 21 engage with the surface of the printing plates 4 onthe plate support member 3 and suction is applied to grip the printingplates 4. Once suction has been applied, the printing plates 4 are heldby the plate loading head 20 and the plate support member 3 can beretracted, in the direction of arrow “D”, as shown in FIG. 6C. Becausethe lead edges 4 a of the printing plates 4 overhang the plate supportmembers 3, the printing plates 4 slide off the front of the platesupport members 3 as the plate support members 3 are retracted and sothere is no need for the plate loading head 20 to actually lift theprinting plates 4 up off the plate support members 3.

Once the plate support member 3 has been retracted, the plate loadinghead 20 is lowered towards the surface of the plate cylinder 7 so thatthe lead edge 4 a of the printing plates 4 locates in the lock-up slot10, as shown in FIG. 6D. Once the lead edges 4 a of the printing plates4 have been inserted, the suction is released and the loading head 20retracted slightly. The plate cylinder 7 is then rotated (in a clockwisedirection as shown in the drawings in the direction of arrow “C”) sothat the pressure roller 23 passes over the lock-up slot 10 onto theprinting plates 4 and thereby ensures that the lead edges 4 a are fullyinserted into the lock-up slot 10, as shown in FIG. 6E. The platecylinder 7 continues to rotate in the direction of arrow “C” and thepressure roller 23 wraps the printing plates 4 around the plate cylinder7 as it does so. Once the trailing edge 4 b of the printing plates 4 isreached, the loading head 20 is lowered once again, as shown in FIG. 6Fand suction is applied to grasp the trailing end 4 b of the printingplates 4. Once the printing plates 4 have been grasped, the loading head20 is retracted to lift the trailing edge 4 a of the printing plates 4off the plate cylinders 7, as shown in FIG. 6G. The pusher bar 22 isthen activated to inwardly deflect the trailing edge 4 b of the printingplates 7, as shown in FIG. 6H, so that once the loading head 20 islowered once again, the trailing edge of the plates drops into thelock-up slot, as shown in FIG. 6I. Once the trailing edge 4 b has beenlocated in the lock up slot 10, the plate cylinder 7 is indexed furtherforward, in the direction of arrow “C” to ensure that the pressureroller 23 pushes the trailing edge 4 b fully into the lock-up slot 10,as shown in FIG. 6J.

The above procedure is repeated to load another row of printing plates 4from another plate support member 3. Alternatively, the plate loadinghead 20 returns to a raised position to allow it to move to anothercylinder 7 together with the cartridge 2.

A more detailed view of the plate loading module 25 and plate loadingsequence is shown in FIGS. 7 to 11. As will be described in more detaillater, the plate loading module 25 is mounted to the printing unit sideframe members 26 and slides in a vertical direction (indicated by arrow“E” in FIG. 7) in a path adjacent to the plate cylinders 7 of one sideof the print unit 36 so that it may be located in a plate loadingposition corresponding to each of the plate cylinders 7 of that side ofthe unit and in a parked position above the printing unit when not beingused. Another plate loading module 25 is mounted to the printing unitside frame members 26 for movement in a vertical direction on theopposite side of the web path to load printing plates 4 onto the platecylinders 7 on that side of the print unit 36. As only two plate loadingmodules 25 are required per print unit to load printing plates 4 ontoall the plate cylinders 7 of that print unit 36, each of those plateloading modules 25 being movable into a loading position adjacent theplate cylinders 7 on one side of the print unit 36, a separate plateloading mechanism located adjacent to each plate cylinder 7 is notrequired.

The plate loading module 25 includes a pair of generally upright andelongate support frame members 27 each of which are slideably mounted onthe printing unit side frame members 26 between which the platecylinders 7 are supported. A support arm 28 is pivotally mounted at oneend to the upper end of each of the support frame members 27 and ismovable from a raised position in which the support arm 28 generallyforms a longitudinal extension of the support frame members 27 (as shownin FIG. 7) and, a lowered, operative position in which the support arm28 pivots (in the direction indicated by arrow “F” in FIG. 8) withrespect to the support frame members 27 to load printing plates 4 onto aplate cylinder 7 in response to activation of a linear actuator 29extending between each of the support frame members 27 and theirrespective support arms 28. As shown in the front view of FIG. 11, theremote end of the support arms 28 are joined by a cross-member 30 whichextends across the width of the print unit and to which the plateloading head 20 is mounted so that it moves as the support arms 28 pivotrelative to the support frame members 27. The cross-member 30 ispivotally mounted to the support arms 28 via levers 31 so that the plateloading head 20 maintains the same angle relative to the printing plates4 despite moving from a raised to a lowered position. A pair of bracingcross-supports 30 a, 30 b also extend between the support frame members27 across the width of the printing unit although these have beenomitted from the FIG. 11 view.

Referring to FIG. 7, an end view of the plate loading module 25 is shownwith its support arms 28 raised and in a position ready to load printingplates 4 from plate support member 3 onto plate cylinder 7 a. The platesupport member 3 is moving in the direction of arrow “A” toward theplate cylinder 7 a and the plate cylinder 7 a is indexing, in thedirection of arrow “B”, to position the lock-up slot 10 in the correctposition so that the plate support member 3 and the plate cylinder 7 awill engage, as has already been explained in detail above. It will beappreciated that the plate support member 3 moves between the supportframe members 27 and in-between the bracing cross supports 30 a,30 b asit travels in the direction of arrow “A” toward the plate cylinder 7 a.

When the plate support member 3 has located on the plate cylinder 7 a,the linear actuator 29 is operated so as to cause the support arms 28 torotate so as to pivot the loading head 20 down toward the printingplates 4 on the plate support member 3 in the direction of arrow “F”, asshown in the end view of FIG. 8. As the support arms 28 rotate, thecross member 30 pivots with respect to the support arms 28 to maintainits angular position with respect to the printing plates 4 and so thatthe suction cups 21 which are parallel to the surface of the printingplates 4 when the support arms 28 are raised, remain parallel to thesurface of the printing plates 4 as the support arms 28 are lowered andcontact the upper surface of the printing plates 4. Suction is thenapplied to the plates 4 via the suction cups 21. The plate supportmember 3 is then retracted, in the direction of arrow “D”, and thesupport arms 28 lowered further in the direction of arrow “F” so thatthe lead edge 4 a of the printing plates 3 locate in the lock-up slot 10in the plate cylinder 7 a, as shown in the end view of FIG. 9. Thesuction is now deactivated and the plate cylinder 7 a rotated in thedirection of arrow “C” to draw the printing plates 3 around thecircumferential surface of the plate cylinder 7 a.

As can be seen more clearly from the enlarged partial end view of FIG.10, the lead edge 4 a of the printing plates 4 are forced into thelock-up slot 10 by a lead edge pusher bar 22 a and, as the platecylinder 7 a rotates, the printing plates 4 are wrapped around the platecylinder 7 a by the pressure roller 23. When the plate cylinder 7 a hasrotated through approximately 360 degrees (or 180 degrees for atwo-around plate cylinder), a tail edge pusher bar 22 b forces the tailedge 4 b of the printing plates 4 into the lock-up slot 10. Once thelead and tailing edges 4 a, 4 b of the printing plates 4 are fullyinserted into the lock-up slot 10, the support arms 28 pivot upwardlyback into their raised position and out of the way.

Although the pressure roller 23 has been described and shown as formingpart of the plate loading head 20, it will also be appreciated that thepressure roller may be entirely separate from the plate loading modulewhich is not attached to the plate loading head 20. This would thenenable the pressure roller 23 to be raised and lowered independently tothe loading head 20. FIG. 10A shows the same view of the plate loadinghead as FIG. 10 but with a separate, rather than integral, pressureroller 23.

As mentioned above, each printing unit is provided with two plateloading modules 25, each module being operable to load printing plates 4onto the plate cylinders 7 positioned one above the other on one side ofthe printing press so that the plate loading module 25 only has to movein a vertical direction, as indicated by arrow “G” in FIG. 12. FIG. 12illustrates a side view of part of a printing unit equipped with a plateloading module 25, as described above, and to which a cartridge 2containing plate support members 3 is releasably attached so that theplate loading module 25 can load printing plates from one of the platesupport members slideably received in the cartridge 2 onto one of theplate cylinders 7 a-7 d of the printing unit 36. The plate loadingmodule 25, together with the cartridge 2, can move from a non-operativeor parked position indicated by “A” in FIG. 12, in which the plateloading module 25 is above the print unit and in its position ready toreceive the cartridge 2, to one of four different positions adjacent toeach of the plate cylinders 7 a to 7 d. For clarity, the plate loadingmodule 25 is also shown in its lowermost position indicated by “E” inwhich it is adjacent to plate cylinder 7 d and operable to load platesfrom one of the plate support members 3 in the cartridge 2 onto thelowermost plate cylinder 7 d. However, it will be appreciated that theplate loading module 25 and cartridge 2 can also move into positions B,C and D between positions “A” and “E” which is adjacent to each of theplate cylinders 7 a, 7 b and 7 c, respectively.

It will be appreciated from the side view of FIG. 12, that the platecylinders 7 a to 7 d are fully accessible by the plate loading module 25and cartridge 2 because the printing unit can split into a pair ofinking modules 35 (only one of which is shown in FIG. 12) and a cylinderor primary module 36 (only part of which is shown in FIG. 12) containingonly the plate cylinders 7 a-7 d and blanket cylinders 37 a. In FIG. 12,only one of the inking modules 35 is shown in its retracted position inwhich it has been moved in the direction of arrow “H” away from thecylinder module 36. The retraction of the inking module 35 from theprimary module 36 containing the plate and blanket cylinders 7 a-7 d, 36forms the subject of another invention and is described in theApplicant's own co-pending UK patent application no. 0408085.9. It willalso be appreciated that when the loading module 25 and cartridge 2 arein the parked position indicated by “A”, it is above the top of theprinting unit so that the inking unit 35 is able to move between itsoperative position in which the inking module 35 is operativelyassociated with the primary module 36 for printing and, a non-operativeposition, in the direction of arrow “H” and as illustrated in FIG. 12,in which the inking module 35 has been retracted from the cylindermodule 36 to facilitate access by the plate loading module 25 andcartridge 2 between the inking module 35 and the cylinder module 36.

A preferred assembly to enable movement of the plate loading module 25between positions A to E in the direction of arrow “G” will now bedescribed with reference to FIGS. 12 to 15 of the drawings. As is mostclearly shown from the front view of the cylinder module 36 of FIG. 13,and the top plan view of a portion of the cylinder module 36 shown inFIG. 15, a support member 37 is attached to each of the side framemembers 26 to which a guide rail 38 is mounted. On one side, (the rightside as illustrated in FIG. 13 and the opposite side to the partial viewof FIG. 15), the guide rail 38 includes a toothed rack 39 which is incooperating engagement with a toothed gearwheel or pinion 40 drivinglyengaged to a braked motor 41 via a gearbox 42 mounted on and extendingbetween the bracing cross supports 30 a, 30 b of the plate loadingmodule 25. It will be appreciated that the support member 37 extendsbeyond the top of the printing unit (see FIG. 12) so that the plateloading module can be moved into its parked non-operative position abovethe printing unit.

Each of the bracing cross supports 30 a, 30 b of the plate loadingmodule 25 is provided, on each side, with a linear slideway 43 mountedon a spacing block 44 and containing roller bearings (not shown) whichengage with the guide rail 38 so that the plate loading module 25 canslide along the guide rails 38, together with the cartridge 2, betweenpositions A to E in response to operation of the motor 41 which causesthe gearwheel 40 to rotate so as to drive the plate loading module 25along the toothed rack 39 between each of said positions “A” to “E”.

To determine the position of the plate loading module 25 relative toeach of the plate cylinders 7 a to 7 d, a plurality of sensors 47 aremounted on the support members 37 which are operable to detect thelocation of the plate loading module 25 so that the motor 41 will stopto position the plate loading module 25 in any one of said positions Ato E. As mentioned previously, although the position of the plateloading mechanism 25 needs to be relatively accurate, its position isnot absolutely critical because the plate support members 3automatically adjust to the correct position when they extend from thecartridge and engage with a plate cylinder 7.

In an alternative embodiment, the rack 39 and pinion 40 and positionsensors 47 can be replaced with an AC servo with encoder feedback andballscrew arrangement for accurate positioning of the plate loadingmodule 25. Belt or cable drive mechanisms may also be employed.

To enable the plate loading module 25 to load printing plates 4 onto aplate cylinder 7 from any of the plate support members 3 located withina cartridge 2, the cartridge 2 is movable, in the direction of arrow“I”, with respect to the plate loading module 25 to which it isreleasably attached so as to position a selected plate support member 3in a loading position. FIGS. 16 to 18 show partial side views of thecylinder module 36 in which the cartridge 2 is shown in three differentlocations with respect to the plate loading module 25. In FIG. 16, theplate loading module 25 is in position “B” to enable printing plates 4to be loaded onto the uppermost plate cylinder 7 a and the cartridge 2is positioned relative to the plate loading module 25 to enable printingplates 4 to be taken from the second highest plate support member 3. InFIG. 17, the plate loading module 25 is in position “E” to enableprinting plates 4 to be loaded onto the lowermost plate cylinder 7 d andthe cartridge 2 is positioned relative to the plate loading module 25 toenable the printing plates 4 to be taken from the lowest plate supportmember 3. FIG. 18 shows the plate loading module 25 in a parkedposition, indicated by “A” in FIG. 12, in which the cartridge 2 isgenerally located in a central position relative to the plate loadingmodule 25. The cartridge 2 may be mounted to the plate loading module 2in a similar way in which the plate loading module 25 is mounted to thecylinder module 36 although it will be appreciated that, as has alreadybeen explained in more detail above, the cartridge 2 is preferablyseparable from the plate loading module 25 so that it can be transportedaway from the print unit and into, for example, a pre-press plate makingarea for loading with printing plates 4 and to facilitate removal of anyused printing plates 4 therefrom. It will also be appreciated that anyone of a number of cartridges can connect to a single plate loadingmodule. It is also envisaged that more than one cartridge could beattached to the plate loading module at a time.

Although the invention has been described with reference to the loadingof printing plates 4 onto plate cylinders 7, it will also be appreciatedthat it can also be used to remove used printing plates 4 from the platecylinders 7. To facilitate this, the cartridge 2 is provided with achamber 2 a beneath the plate support members 3 into which used printingplates 4 are dropped by the plate loading module 25 after they areremoved from the plate cylinder 7.

An arrangement for moving each of the plate support members 3 from theirretracted to their extended positions from the cartridge 2 will now bedescribed in more detail with reference to FIGS. 19 and 20 whichillustrate a simplified plan view of the underside of a plate supportmember 3 when the cartridge 2 is attached to the plate loading module25. However, the outline of the cartridge 2 has been omitted forclarity. As can be seen in FIG. 19, which shows the plate support member3 in its retracted state, the plate support member 3 carries a slideway50 at each end which are mounted on runners 51 attached to the cartridge2. The plate loading module 25 includes a linear air cylinder 52 mountedto it which extends across part of the width of the plate support member3 and carries a cam follower 53 thereon operable to slide or traversealong the linear air cylinder 52. The underside of each plate supportmember 3 carries a cam track 54 which is angled with respect to thefront edge 55 of the plate support member 3. The arrangement is suchthat, when a selected plate support member 3 is positioned at thecorrect location with respect to the cam follower 53, movement of thecam follower 53 along the linear air cylinder 52 in the direction ofarrow “J” in FIG. 20 causes it to cooperate with the cam track 54 andpush the plate support member 3 into an extended position in thedirection of arrow “K”. The plate support member 3 may move in thedirection of arrow “K” against a spring bias acting on the plate supportmember 3 via the runners 51 so that, when the cam follower 53 moves backto its initial position shown in FIG. 19, the plate support member 3follows it back into its original retracted position. An advantage ofthis arrangement is that the cartridge 2 itself need not be providedwith any power supply as the plate support members 3 are moved by theplate loading module 25 via cooperation between the cam track 54 and thecam follower 53.

It will be appreciated that the printing plate storage module 25according to the invention provides a simple and efficient way in whichto align printing plates 4 ready for loading onto a plate cylinder 7 ofa printing unit. As the cartridge 2 is movable from a remote location,such as a pre-press plate making area, to the press, the printing plates4 can be mounted on the plate support members 3 in their predeterminedpositions and the cartridge 2 can then be transported to the appropriateprinting unit of the press at plate changeover time either automaticallyor manually. As the cartridge 2 may contain printing plates 4 forseveral plate cylinders 7, a whole printing unit may be plated upquickly and efficiently if the cartridge 2 is first loaded with all theprinting plates 4 for the plate cylinders 7 of a specific print unit.Furthermore, as the plate support members 3 are coupled to the pressand, in particular, the plate cylinder 7 to which plates 4 are beingloaded, the position of the plates 3 is firmly maintained whilst theplate loading head 20 grasps the printing plates 4.

Many modifications and variations of the invention falling within theterms of the following claims will be apparent to those skilled in theart and the foregoing description should be regarded as a description ofthe preferred embodiments only.

1. A printing plate module for holding printing plates ready to betransferred onto a plate cylinder of a printing press during a plateloading cycle, the printing plate module comprising a printing platesupport member having means to locate printing plates in predeterminedpositions thereon and engagement means on the printing plate supportmember for the temporary engagement of the printing plate support memberwith the printing press during the plate loading cycle to locateprinting plates on the plate support member in predetermined positionsrelative to the plate cylinder of the press onto which printing platesare to be transferred, and a cartridge, the printing plate supportmember being slidable between a storage position in which the platesupport member is received within the cartridge and, a plate loadingposition in which the printing plate support member extends from thecartridge to enable the engagement means to make temporary engagementwith printing press during the plate loading cycle.
 2. A printing platemodule according to claim 1, wherein the printing plate support memberincludes means to locate a plurality of printing plates thereon so thateach printing plate is located in a predetermined position on the platesupport member and, in a predetermined position relative to each of theother printing plates located on the plate support member.
 3. A printingplate module according to claim 1, wherein the cartridge is releasablyattachable to a plate loading module on the printing press which isoperable to transfer printing plates from the plate support member ontothe plate cylinder with which the plate support member has becometemporarily engaged, the cartridge being detachable from the plateloading module to enable the plate loading module to be moved away fromthe printing press to facilitate loading of plates onto the platesupport member.
 4. A printing plate module according to claim 3,comprising a plurality of printing plate support members in thecartridge, each printing plate support member being independentlyslideable between the storage position and the plate loading positionfor the transfer of the printing plates from any of the plate supportmembers onto the plate cylinder by the plate loading module.
 5. Aprinting plate module according to claim 4, wherein each plate supportmember includes a cam track which co-operates with a movable cam memberon the plate loading module, when the cartridge is attached thereto, tomove the plate support member from the storage into the plate loadingposition.
 6. A printing plate module according to claim 1, wherein themeans to locate printing plates on the or each plate support membercomprises a plurality of pins on the or each plate support member forengagement in slots formed in a leading edge of each printing plate. 7.A printing press system comprising a printing plate module according toclaim 1 and a plate-loading module for transferring printing plates fromthe plate support member, on which printing plates are located inpre-determined positions, onto a plate cylinder of a printing pressduring a plate loading cycle in which the printing plate support memberis in temporary engagement with the printing press to locate printingplates on the plate support member in a predetermined position relativeto said plate cylinder, the plate-loading module comprising a carriageattached to the printing press so that the carriage is movable intopositions adjacent to each of the plate cylinders of the press, asupport arm attached to the carriage pivotable relative thereto betweena plate loading position and a retracted position and, a plate loadinghead attached to the remote end of the support arm, the plate loadinghead being operable to engage printing plates located on the platesupport member in temporary engagement with the printing press when thesupport arm pivots towards its loading position so that the printingplates are held by the plate loading head when the plate support memberis disengaged and withdrawn from the printing press, further pivotalmovement of the support arm into its loading position, after withdrawalof the plate support member from the printing press, being operable tolocate a leading edge of the printing plates in a predetermined positionon the plate cylinder.
 8. A plate-loading module according to claim 7,wherein the plate loading head is pivotally mounted on the support armto maintain the orientation of the plate loading head relative to theplate support member when the support arm pivots between its retractedand loading positions.
 9. A plate-loading module according to claim 8,wherein the plate loading head comprises an array of suction elementswhich contact the surface of the printing plates when the support arm ispivoted towards its loading position, the suction elements beingoperable to grasp the printing plates when activated.
 10. Aplate-loading module according to claim 9, wherein the plate loadinghead comprises a pressure roller for pressing the printing platesagainst the plate cylinder once the plate loading head has located theleading edge of the printing plates in a predetermined position on theplate cylinder, as the plate cylinder rotates to wrap the printingplates around the plate cylinder.
 11. A plate-loading module accordingto claim 7, wherein the plate-loading module includes means forreleasably attaching the cartridge of the printing plate module thereto.12. A plate-loading module according to claim 11, wherein a plurality ofplate support members are received in the cartridge, the plate loadingmodule being operable to transfer printing plates from any of the platesupport members onto a plate cylinder.
 13. A printing press comprising aplurality of plate cylinders a printing plate module according to claim1 and a plate-loading module operable to transfer a plurality ofprinting plates from plate support members onto the plate cylinders ofthe press, the plate loading module including a carriage mounted to thepress and movable between a non-operative parked position into plateloading positions adjacent to each of the plate cylinders of the press.14. A printing press according to claim 13, including an elongate guidetrack mounted on the printing press and a slide unit on the carriage inco-operation with the guide track to enable the carriage to slide alongthe guide track into positions adjacent to each of the plate cylindersof the press.
 15. A printing press according to claim 14, wherein theslide unit comprises pre-loaded roller bearings which co-operate withthe guide track.
 16. A printing press according to claim 14, including amotor mounted to the carriage for moving the carriage along the track.17. A printing press according to claim 16, including a pinion inmeshing engagement with a toothed rack mounted to the printing press,the pinion being rotatably driven in response to rotation of the motorto move the carriage along the guide track.
 18. A printing pressaccording to claim 13, including sensing means to determine the positionof the carriage on the guide track so that the carriage can be stoppedin different pre-determined positions adjacent to each of the platecylinders of the press.
 19. A printing press according to claim 13,including a primary module, to which the plate cylinders are mounted,and at least one inking module, to which inking systems for applying inkto the plate cylinders are mounted, wherein the inking module isseparable from the primary module to facilitate access to the platecylinders by the plate loading module.
 20. A printing press according toclaim 19, wherein the carriage is mounted to the primary module so thatit can move from its non-operative parked position into its plateloading positions only when the inking module has been separated fromthe primary module.
 21. A printing press according to claim 13, whereinthe plate-loading module comprises a carriage attached to the printingpress so that the carriage is movable into positions adjacent to each ofthe plate cylinders of the press, a support arm attached to the carriagepivotable relative there to between a plate loading position and aretracted position and, a plate loading head attached to the remote endof the support arm, the plate loading head being operable to engageprinting plates located on a plate support member in engagement with theprinting press when the support arm pivots towards its loading positionso that the printing plates are held by the plate loading head when theplate support member is disengaged and withdrawn from the printingpress, further pivotal movement of mounted to the press and movablebetween the non-operative parked position into plate loading positionadjacent to each of the plate cylinders of the press.
 22. A printingpress according to claim 21, wherein engagement means to locate eachplate support member thereon are located on each plate cylinder.
 23. Aprinting press according to claim 22, wherein the engagement meanscomprises an end stop member on each plate cylinder.
 24. A printingpress according to claim 23, wherein the stop member is located at eachend of each plate cylinder and is recessed below the cylindrical surfaceof the plate cylinder.
 25. A printing press according to claim 23,wherein at least one end stop member is located at the end of a guidechannel.
 26. A printing press according to-claim 21, wherein each platecylinder has a lock-up slot in which a lead edge of each printing plateis inserted by the plate-loading module during a plate loadingoperation.
 27. A method of transferring printing plates, located on aprinting plate support member in a printing plate storage module to aplate cylinder of a printing press comprising the steps of: (a) moving aplate support member together with printing plates located thereontowards the printing press so that the plate support member temporarilyengages the press to locate the printing plates in a predeterminedposition relative to the plate cylinder onto which plates are to betransferred, (b) operating a printing plate loading module to transferprinting plates from the plate support member onto the plate cylinder;and (c) moving the plate loading module together with the plate supportmember into a position adjacent to one of the plate cylinders onto whichplates are to be transferred prior to carrying out step (a), wherein theplate support member is slideably received in a cartridge for movementbetween a storage position in the cartridge and an extended position forengagement with the press, the cartridge being releasably attachable tothe plate-loading module and the method including the step of attachingthe cartridge to the plate loading module before carrying out steps (a),(b) or (c).
 28. A method according to claim 27, wherein the printingpress includes engagement means to temporarily engage the plate supportmember, the engagement means being located on each of the platecylinders, the method including the step of rotating the plate cylinderwhilst moving the plate support member towards it so that the platesupport member engages with the engagement means on the plate cylinderonto which the printing plates are to be transferred to locate theprinting plates in a predetermined position relative to said platecylinder.
 29. A method according to claim 27, wherein the cartridgecontains a plurality of plate support members and the method includesthe step of moving the cartridge relative to the plate loading module toenable the plate loading module to transfer plates from any one of theplate support members onto different plate cylinders of the press.
 30. Amethod of mounting a set of printing plates to a plate cylinder of anoffset rotary printing press comprising a plate cylinder having alock-up slot, the method including the steps of: (a) locating a set ofprinting plates in predetermined relative positions on a plate supportmember, (b) moving the plate support member together with thepre-positioned printing plates located thereon towards the platecylinder so that cooperating means on the plate support member and onthe plate cylinder releasably engage to locate the pre-positionedprinting plates in a predetermined position relative to the lock-up sloton the plate cylinder, and (c) operating a printing plate loading moduleassociated with the printing press to convey the pre-positioned printingplates from the plate support member and to insert the lead edge of eachprinting plate into the lock-up slot whilst maintaining the relativepre-positioning of the printing plates, wherein the plate support memberis mounted in a cartridge and the method includes the step of mountingthe printing plates on the plate support member in the cartridge in alocation remote from the press and moving the cartridge into a plateloading position in which the plate support member can move toward theplate cylinder so that cooperating means on the plate support member andon the plate cylinder releasably engage to locate the pre-positionedprinting plates in a predetermined position relative to the lock-up sloton the plate cylinder, and wherein the cartridge includes a plurality ofplate support members and the method includes the step of locating aplurality of sets of printing plates in predetermined relative locationson each plate support member.
 31. A method according to claim 30,wherein step (b) includes the step of rotating the plate cylinder sothat the cooperating means on the plate support member and on the platecylinder releasably engage.
 32. A method according to claim 30,including the step of moving the cartridge into plate loading positionsadjacent to different plate cylinders of a press, the plate loadingdevice being operable to convey sets of pre-positioned printing platesfrom different plate support members onto the same and/or differentplate cylinders of the press as the cartridge moves into different plateloading positions.
 33. A method according to claim 30, including thestep of retracting the plate support member into the cartridge when theplate loading module transfers the printing plates from that platesupport member onto the plate cylinder.